NYS - So Long Silver.....!!!!

It's official....Sheldon Silver is stepping down as Assembly Speaker...from Capital Confidential:

Sheldon Silver’s 21-year reign as speaker of the New York state Assembly will end on Monday. Under the process agreed to by the 105-member Democratic majority, Majority Leader Joe Morelle of Rochester will be voted in Monday as interim speaker until the Feb. 10 election of a permanent leader. Morelle is expected to be a candidate for the post, along with Keith Wright of Manhattan and Carl Heastie from the Bronx. (TU)

As he left the Capitol just before 8 p.m., Silver would not say if he plans offer a resignation as speaker or if members will vote him out. He said only that he will not hinder the succession process. (CapCon)  http://blog.timesunion.com/capitol/archives/228344/a-m-roundup-the-sun-sets-on-silver/

BILL MAGEE & NYS ASSEMBLY - Time to DUMP SILVER

Sheldon Silver...you need to do the right thing and RESIGN.  Bill Magee, et al. it's up to you and the rest of the Assembly to see this rotten apple gets dumped from the barrel.  ANY LEGISLATOR standing behind SS deserves to follow him and his greed out the door.  For too many years it has been all too apparent that ALBANY has been a hotbed of graft and abuse.  Here is an editorial from the Syracuse Post Standard that adequately sums it up....DUMP THE CHUMP...send him to the CURB!

NY Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver must resign (Editorial)

It should go without saying that Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver -- charged Thursday with taking millions of dollars in graft -- must resign from that job. He's politically crippled, ethically bankrupt and supremely unfit to lead.

But that may not be enough. Silver should consider quitting Albany entirely -- for the good of the institution, the good of the state and the good of the people.

The speaker has professed his innocence, and he will have his day in court. However, from now on he will carry the taint of corruption wherever he goes.

Say Silver does quit his leadership job but remains in the Legislature. After 20 years as speaker, does anyone believe he would be content to be a back-bencher in the Assembly? It doesn't matter where he sits in the chamber; Silver still will be pulling the strings.

Need proof? Just look at the Assembly Democrats lining up behind their leader in his hour of crisis. Have you ever seen (or heard) a more deluded bunch?"We have every confidence that the speaker is going to continue to fulfill his role with distinction," Rochester Assemblyman Joe Morelle said. This was before he read the 35-page criminal complaint against Silver.

We recommend that everyone read it -- and weep. Then demand more from your elected officials than blind allegiance to their embattled leader.

With corruption charges hanging over the speaker's head, any deals Cuomo and Skelos might cut with him would be suspect in the eyes of the public.

Syracuse Assemblyman Bill Magnarelli, a lawyer himself, said this after Silver's arrest: "It's the same as it was yesterday. Nothing has changed except there's this new wrinkle, so to speak."

On the contrary, Mr. Magnarelli. Everything has changed. If the allegations are true, Albany's cancer of corruption reaches right to the top. At minimum, our elected leaders should remove Silver from the speaker role.

As one of Albany's "three men in a room,'' along with the governor and the Senate majority leader, Silver has negotiated every piece of important legislation passed in New York state over the past two decades. The New York Times called Silver "a mercurial and potent force who could single-handedly sink the most cherished plans of mayors and governors.''

It's ironic that one of Albany's most opaque politicians appears to have been done in by aroutine ethics disclosure form. It's doubly ironic that the seeds of Silver's downfall were sown by the Moreland Commission to Investigate Public Corruption -- which he succeeded in closing down as part of the last budget deal. Thankfully, U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara picked up where Moreland left off.

Now, with corruption charges hanging over the speaker's head, any deals Gov. Andrew Cuomo and Senate Majority Leader Dean Skelos might cut with him would be suspect in the eyes of the public.

Silver is damaged goods. He should leave Albany before they run him out on a rail.

TOWN - A ROTTEN STATE OF AFFAIRS

Be sure to get a copy of this week's Waterville Times....talk about unmitigated gall....these guys surpass themselves at every meeting.  SALKA - the new "Rules of Decorum" are quite clearly GAG ORDERS ...just how stupid do you think we are?...and as for JOE WALKER - then just WHY did you raise your hand when asked if you had a GAS LEASE?????? This is truly a rotten state of affairs for the Town.

BCS - Educational Opportunities -

For those of you who have students at BROOKFIELD CENTRAL, there are several opportunities you should be aware of.    

WANT A FREE HIGH-TECH EDUCATION IN ALBANY?

The Colleges of Nanoscale Science and Engineering at SUNY Polytechnic Institute in Albany says it has started to accept applications for the fall 2015 semester.The university, which is now independent of the University at Albany, said that a “significant number” of full and partial scholarships are available for those who are accepted into the prestigious program.SUNY Poly recently began accepting applications for admission to CNSE with authorization from the New York State Education Department.  Students can apply using the SUNY application, the Common Application, or by going to the CNSE website.

FREE SAT Prep COURSE OFFERED THROUGH COLGATE UNIVERSITY
Another session of Let’s Get Ready (LGR) is about to begin at Colgate. As always, LGR provides SAT preparation for all high school juniors in our area. The SAT prep is provided by Colgate student coaches who have been trained by the national Let’s Get Ready organization and who have recently taken the SAT exam.  The Let’s Get Ready program meets two times a week on Colgate’ Campus. All high school students participating in LGR will receive approximately 15 hours each of both Math and Verbal Training. The program also includes two practice SAT exams. LGR will meet on Colgate’s campus on Thursday and Sunday evenings throughout the spring 2015 semester. The program will begin with the first practice SAT exam and a parent orientation on Sunday, February 1, 2015 and will conclude April 30, in time for the SAT test on Saturday, May 2, 2015. We are pleased to be offering both SAT preparation and LGR’s College Choice curriculum again this spring.  As in years past, LGR is FREE for all high school juniors. Although the program is free, students will be asked to submit a $25 deposit in the form of a check or blank money order at the start of the program. The deposit will be returned to students who meet the attendance requirement (no more than 3 absences). The application link: https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/ColgateSS... 

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BCS - UPDATE - Veteran's School Tax Exemption Still Undecided

We hear back that only four veterans turned out for the January 14 public hearing to voice opinion regarding extending SCHOOL property tax exemptions to local veterans.  It's not clear at this point if the Board can offer this as an option or not; it may be that if the Board passed this, any veterans already receiving the county benefit would automatically get this one with no option to refuse it or not sign up for it.

TOWN BOARD - New RULES Severely Limit Public Participation

I guess the Brookfield Town Supervisor & Board have grown more than a little anxious with local participation in the Town Board Meetings.  Taking the lead from Madison County Board Chairman Becker's clamp down on public comment, Salka has introduced the new Rules for the Public which the Board approved on 1/12.  

Based on the new RULES, the Brookfield TOWN BOARD has effectively stopped public involvement and placed severe limitations on public comment and inquiry.  If all comments, questions, inquiries have to go through SALKA....quite plainly they are saying "we DON'T WANT TO HEAR ABOUT IT ....OR DO ANYTHING ABOUT IT...."

Here is a portion of the introduction to the RULES:
The purpose of the public comment period is to discuss Town business only.....Town Board meetings are required to be held in public for the purpose of allowing the public to observe the meetings. (Emphasis in the RULES).......Individual problems,concerns or questions of the public should initially be addressed to the Town Supervisor’s office, rather than be brought up at Town Board meetings. This will allow the Supervisor to gather the necessary information and/or personnel to address those concerns. If those concerns are notaddressed to the satisfaction of the individual, then redress by the entire Town Board may be the next option. 

Salka refused to post the Rules before the organizational meeting and finally got around to providing them to the Town website, early this morning.  Check them out at the town website:  http://www.brookfieldny.us/uploads/1/3/6/9/13694452/rulesfordecorumatpublicmeetings1.pdf

SWAMPSVILLE: Political Intrigue In County's PROPERTY TAX OFFICE

What's going on in the MADISON COUNTY PROPERTY TAX DEPT??   Its newly appointed director, Paul Smith, was dumped by the powers that be in Swampsville.... in a "quickly planned" meeting... without public notice or comment....must have been really nasty...the Supervisors went so far as to entirely "vacate" his position because Smith hadn't signed and taken the official oath within 30 days of taking office.  If that's the case, I bet we would have to vacate the positions of half the town boards and other County positions.  Hope the Oneida Dispatch follows up on this political intrigue...always something....Link to January 13 full article:  http://www.oneidadispatch.com/

 

Here are excerpts from the article: 

" On a procedural technicality, Madison County officials on Tuesday vacated the position of director of Real Property Tax Services.... In a quickly-planned meeting Tuesday morning, supervisors met in executive session as the Committee of the Whole before convening as a board to officially terminate Paul Smith as director of the Department of Real Property Tax Services..... As required by state public officers law, Smith needed to sign and file an official oath of office within 30 days of his appointment. According to county officials he never did so and that automatically “vacates” the position......County officials also would not comment on whether any problems involving Smith had been documented."

 

FORECLOSURE - Rte 8 Sutton Farm....

Rumor is from this month's Town Board meeting:  the County is in the process of foreclosing on the Sutton Farm, Rte 8 for back taxes.  There is a possibility that the owners can redeem their property by paying the back taxes.  This property has been an unlicensed junk yard for years and subject of numerous complaints and violations.  Good to see the County taking action.

BCS - TECH ED Opportunity for Local Students

One would hope that the BCS School Board would JUMP on this educational opportunity offered through Oneida-Madison BOCES. 

UPDATE: Here are the participating  schools - INCLUDING BROOKFIELD: 

 Component ONEIDA HERKIMER &MADISON BOCES districts: Brookfield, Clinton, Holland Patent, New Hartford, New York Mills, Oriskany, Remsen, Sauquoit Valley, Utica, Waterville, Westmoreland and Whitesboro.

Component Herkimer-Fulton-Otsego BOCES districts: Central Valley, Dolgeville, Frankfort-Schuyler, Herkimer, Little Falls, Mount Markham, Owen D. Young, Poland, Richfield Springs and West Canada Valley.

Read more: http://www.uticaod.com/article/20150112/News/150119963#ixzz3OccnWsH4

Read more: http://www.uticaod.com/article/20150112/News/150119963#ixzz3OcbuXRyb

College isn’t for everyone, but neither is the average high school path.  For those in that situation, there’s a new option — and it comes with an associate degree.

Late last year, the governor’s office announced multi-million-dollar grants for two new technical sites in which will operate out of Herkimer-Fulton-Otsego BOCES and Oneida-Herkimer-Madison BOCES, combine elements of high school, college and the professional world.

Though the courses are open to all learners, the P-TECH model targets students who are at risk of dropping out of high school, or not successfully completing college because of cultural or social barriers.

The first class of ninth-graders will start in the fall. The schools still are admitting students, and interested students can learn more by contacting their schools’ guidance counselors.  Students are expected to graduate in five to six years with a Regents diploma and an associate degree from either Herkimer County or Mohawk Valley community colleges.

In Herkimer, P-TECH will offer quality assurance and advanced manufacturing courses.  In Utica, students can learn semiconductor manufacturing and financial services management.

Check out the rest of this article and information at:  Utica OD site:  http://www.uticaod.com/article/20150112/News/150119963#ixzz3ObxCJboK

RIP - Lynn Stillman

Sorry to hear of the passing of Lynn Stillman, 63, of Brookfield, died January 7, 2015. Arrangements by Paul Funeral Home, Brookfield.  

Read more: http://www.uticaod.com/article/20150108/News/150109543#ixzz3OLWD6bHq

FREE! Income Tax Preparation Available to Madison County Residents....

If you are a Madison County resident who earned less than $53,000 this tax year, you may qualify to have your tax preparation done free of charge.If you are a senior citizen 60+, you are eligible for free tax return preparation regardless of income.  Trained community volunteers can help you with special credits, such as Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC), Child Tax Credit, and Credit for the Elderly for which you may qualify. Easy electronic filing puts your refund in your hands in two weeks.

 

In Madison County, appointments will be available at Community Action Partnership for Madison County in Morrisville, Department of Social Services in Wampsville, Caz Cares in Cazenovia, and Gorman Community Center in Oneida. To arrange an appointment, please call Community Action Partnership for Madison County at (315) 280-0889. For 60+ an appointment in Madison County, please call Madison County Tax Counseling for the Elderly Program at 684-3001, ext. 103.  Before calling, check the remainder of this link for a list of in formation you will need and further details ....CLICK THIS LINK to the MADISON COUNTY COURIER :  http://madisoncountycourier.com/?p=59905#more-59905

SWAMPSVILLE - State of the County aka the Annual "WHINE" !!!

Another year of whining & blaming from Madison County Board of Supervisors...blame it on the constituents, the State mandates, but don't mention your own fat 16% SUPERVIORS' salary increases and free health insurance  while you stick it to the TAXPAYERS with a 8.4% tax increase..... and in the same year the County receives a $12 million windfall from the Oneida Nation settlement!

Check out the Oneida Dispatch article  (http://www.oneidadispatch.com/general-news/20150107/becker-delivers-state-of-the-county-address  ) and full transcript of Chairman Becker's STATE OF MADISON COUNTY ADDRESS... aka "The Annual WHINE" ....Mr. Becker needs to put on his "big boy pants" if the first thing he can do is whine about his constituents criticisms...  and BEGINS the speech whining about his constituents......who the hell are we to "second guess" our representatives???...somehow he thinks voting someone into office make them omniscient!!?   We voted them into office to "rule"?   Sorry, but last time we checked, it was a democracy and he pretty well shut off any public comment with the new Public Comment Rules...as for the "frequent" and "vicious" attacks he should ask if there is a "reason" or is he just paranoid? Nobody claims that this is an easy job.  Just the burden is not being shared and these insurance perks make it look worse.  And a 16% salary increase on top of it...and hide it in the budget.  With this kind of treatment us taxpayers should be paranoid!!! 


Nice of him to NOT TO MENTION their 16% salary increase or their NO CONTRIBUTION/TAX FREE health & retirement benefits....where was that in the "message" to Madison County??  Pathetic --- the average "part-timer" supervisor receives these SUPERIOR benefits to those of the FULL TIME workers!!!   If anyone should be whining it's the TAXPAYERS....There are CONSTITUENTS out there who work a helluva lot harder at FULL TIME JOBS and receive NO WHERE NEAR what these Supervisors get for their PART TIME JOBS, while the rest of us "eat cake".   

To quote our Supervisor, John Salka's FACEBOOK response to these criticisms:  " " The issue of the health insurance for the supervisors is officially beat to death.  I challenge anyone to say, with all honesty, that they would refuse and option to cover their family with good insurance, especially when they have a sick child.  If they say they would refuse they are simply  lying or willing to sacrifice thousands of dollars for principle's sake......"

AVERAGE SUPERVISOR (2015 BUDGET) EARNS:
AVERAGE (19):

SALARY = $16,200  
INSURANCE = $19,500 (Tax FREE - NO CONTRIBUTION)
RETIREMENT = 2,400  
TOTAL = $38,100 AVERAGE

Becker's PART TIME salary & benefits are included above.  

BECKER Salary = $30,000  
INSURANCE = $29, 221  
RETIREMENT = 5,753   
TOTAL = $64,974 

DON'T Let BCS School Board TURN THEIR BACK ON OUR VETERANS!!!

Check out today's issue of the WATERVILLE TIMES...BCS Cannot Decide If they shoul give Property Tax Exemptions to our Veterans! The School Board wants your input...

         Based on the article,  Superintendent Jim Plows "doesn't want the Board to feel any pressure to grant the exemption".    Board  members (Whitaker/Karns & Rogers) are "on the fence", but based on their comments, tend not to grant the exemption based on the "cost to taxpayers" and I quote, with these exemptions "it would be more difficult to pass the next budget"!     
          The Board doesn't  want to "burden the tax payers"?  Certainly didn't seem to bother them when they put together the 14.5% budget increase.  Now they want to take it out of our Veterans'  hides -- and tell us we can't afford them -- yet didn't even take the time to evaluate what the "cost" would be...I mean, how many Vets from WW2, Korea & Vietnam can there be in this District???  
          Regardless, the Board and Superintendent ask the tax payers each year to put Mega Millions into unnecessary space and ball fields, Cadillac health & retirement benefits, yet question a commitment to the people who REALLY SERVED our country?
          The Board has asked for your input, so  CALL YOUR BOARD MEMBER AND SPEAK UP FOR THE VETS...OR SHOW UP at the special school board meeting and  public hearing for the exemption on WED JAN 14 at 7PM - but call your BOARD MEMBERS NOW.... these vets  put their lives on the line for you and your country...the least we can do is call up or show up...but for God's sake DON'T SHUT UP!! Pick up a copy of the Waterville Times for full details on front page. 

These are the Board Members and Superintendent's names:
Jim Plows - Superintendent
Bernard C. Whitacre, President
Jeffrey Beehm, Vice President
Gerry Elliott
Sean Karn
Ryan Rogers

Healthcare HYPOCRITS at HARVARD....

What a bunch of hypocritical saps.... while I may be considered "liberal" ...these guys are "above-it-all liberals" -- here are the major so-called Harvard "thinkers" who so adamantly supported Obama-care and now are moaning because they have to share in their healthcare premium costs at Harvard. They are as hypocritical as the government representatives in this country  -- AT ALL LEVELS-- with their "let them eat cake" attitude toward the rest of us.  Read it and LAUGH!   Here are a couple of quotes from these HARVARD HYPOCRITS -- they need to get a REAL JOB and live in the REAL WORLD.  I SUPPORT OBAMACARE but we ALL have to SHARE in the costs.  Remember, these CADILLAC insurance policies run $30,000 per year and UP and ARE NOT TAXABLE....so these policies are TAX FREE INCOME FROM THEIR EMPLOYERS and TAXPAYERS.  Our Town SUPERVISORS and STATE LEGISLATORS get the same LUXURY treatment as these HYPOCRITS and have the balls to bellyache:

 Richard F. Thomas, a Harvard professor of classics and one of the world’s leading authorities on Virgil, called the changes “deplorable, deeply regressive, a sign of the corporatization of the university.”

Mary D. Lewis, a professor who specializes in the history of modern France and has led opposition to the benefit changes, said they were tantamount to a pay cut. “Moreover,” she said, “this pay cut will be timed to come at precisely the moment when you are sick, stressed or facing the challenges of being a new parent.”

http://www.nytimes.com/2015/01/06/us/health-care-fixes-backed-by-harvards-experts-now-roil-its-faculty.html?&hpw&rref=us&action=click&pgtype=Homepage&module=well-region&region=bottom-well&WT.nav=bottom-well&_r=0

BROOKFIELD 2015 PROPERTY TAXES = $31.43 per $1,000

Okay folks, now that all the 2015 property tax bills are out, let's
take a look at how much it cost to live here in Brookfield.
Below is a breakdown of the cost per $1,000 of assessed value
to live in Brookfield.
Based on the 2015 tax bills, property owners in Brookfield will
pay $31.43 for every ONE THOUSAND Dollars of Assessed Value.
			2015 PROPERTY TAX
TAX LEVY (2015)			ANNUAL	MONTHLY
$50,000 assessed value			$          1,572	$     131
$100,000 assessed value			$          3,143	$     262
			2015
			Rate
TAX LEVY (2015)			$/$1000	Increase
SCHOOL - BCS			$          16.11	9.50%
COUNTY - Madison			$           7.89	8.40%
TOWN - Brookfield			$           6.47	1.40%
FIRE - Brookfield			$           0.96
			$          31.43

CEO Changes Coming to Chobani

According to today’s NY Post, the founder of Chobani yogurt,Hamdi Ulukaya, is being replaced as CEO and may even be stripped of his chairman role as the company scrambles to reverse financial wreckage associated with the 2013  recall. Insiders pin most of the blame on the Idaho factory, built by Ulukaya at a cost of $450 million, was responsible for the costly recall and only operating at 20 percent of capacity in 2013.  See full story at today’s NY Post…http://nypost.com/2015/01/05/chobani-ceo-being-replaced-may-be-stripped-of-chairman-role/

Are School Superintendents worth their COST?

Good article on the money spent for School Superintendents and their attempts to justify these rich salaries… BCS Superintendent Jim Plows comes out on top at $144,000 per year and a budget of $6 million (240 Students) vs. New York Mills Superintendent who only earns $139,000 and a $13 million budget (630 Students).  The highest earning school official in the Mohawk Valley raked in nearly $200,000 last year. That's almost $20,000 more than Gov. Andrew Cuomo grosses. http://www.uticaod.com/article/20150104/NEWS/150109896/1994/NEWS